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Loud, brash, cocky and extroverted, Joe P. Cox is one of Clarence's footsoldiers. He is known for his extremely hyperactive laughter, laughing maniacally at occasions (particularly from knocking out Lewis to testing out the Cobra assault cannon) throughout the movie.

First seen during the chase and firefight on Industrial Way with the rest of the boys, he proves himself a capable fighter, firing one handed with his shotgun at Officers Murphy and Lewis with a good degree of accuracy. He is later caught with his pants down, or rather his fly open, by Lewis in the old steel mill. She orders him to raise his hands and turn around as she closes in, but Joe manages to use his "natural African-American charm" to turn the tables on her. The moment her eyes drop to the element of her attention, Joe lashes out, first knocking her pistol out of her hand, then punching her with the other hand in the face, knocking her off a platform and onto some scrap metal fifteen feet below. Rather than go down and finish her off, Joe merely points and laughs.

As Clarence is beating Murphy for information about his partner's whereabouts, but before the damage really gets dealt, Joe casually swaggers in and announces that she's been taken care of. With the rest of the gang he mutilates and tortures Murphy with his shotgun until it runs dry of ammo. Cox then coldly taunts Murphy after the ordeal, sarcastically asking in a falsetto voice "Does it hurt? Does it hurt?", then laughing like a hyena. He is the last to leave the scene, bidding farewell to Murphy's bloodied, destroyed body with the memorable line "goodnight, sweet prince!" (a quotation from Shakespeare's Hamlet, suggesting Cox may be well-educated despite his line of work.)

Joe is next seen in Sal's drug factory, covering his boss and Steve Minh as they arrange, or rather force, Sal into business with them. As the deal is done, RoboCop smashes his way into the factory and kills or injures everyone in the room. Steve and Joe fight side by side until Steve cops a burst of Auto 9 fire and reflexively lamps Joe in the face. Joe pitches off the gantry and into a pile of conveniently empty cardboard boxes, from which he is seemingly unable to extricate himself. Though not shown on screen, he is then arrested and hauled off to jail.

He next appears during the gang's reunion, immediately after the police strike, screeching loudly to a halt in true Joe Cox style in an identical car to Clarence, a brand new 6000 SUX, which "still got the factory sticker on it!"

Unfortunately for Joe, Clarence doesn't take too well to this cocky outburst and promptly shows his gang a new toy... a Cobra Assault Cannon. Despite Joe's pleads for restraint, Clarence wastes no time in demonstrating the new weapon... on Joe's car, obliterating it utterly. Everyone, except Joe of course, finds this hilarious.

Later on he appears at the Steel mill, pulling up with Emil in the van and making far too much noise, which Clarence immediately raps them for. A few short moments later, Joe is walking beside Leon as the gang skulk deeper into the ruinous old site. RoboCop distracts them by throwing a piece of metal to far side of the alley to draw their fire. Perhaps recalling how Cox cruelly taunted him when Clarence's gang shot him to pieces, RoboCop targets Cox and makes sure he is the first to die. RoboCop himself taunts them from behind saying, "Looking for me?" then empties his Auto 9 machine-pistol into Cox. He takes three volleys right in the chest (each a 9mm triple burst), blowing chunks of his ribcage open - it probably "hurt". Cox's death is surprisingly not instantaneous, as he writhes on the ground for at least several seconds as his fellow gang members simply abandon him to die in agony.